Have you been losing weight and despite staying on your diet and exercising, your weight suddenly stays the same?   Don't get discouraged, it's normal for weight loss to slow down and even stop.   This phenomenon is called the "weight-loss plateau" and it's more common than you think.  Even the best planned weight loss program can become stalled.

According to the Mayo Clinic, here's why this happens.   A rapid weight loss is common during the first few weeks of a well planned diet.  When calories are reduced the body gets needed energy by releasing its stores of glycogen, a type of carbohydrate stored in the liver and muscles.   Glycogen holds a lot of water so when it is used up at the beginning of a diet, it also releases the water--about 4 grams per gram of glycogen, resulting in a sudden weight loss that is mostly water.

Once your diet progresses and  you start burning lean muscle tissue, your metabolism slows.  Metabolism is the process of converting food into energy.  When you lose weight you lose fat and lean muscle and this weigh-loss changes once your metabolism slows.   At this point,  you need to increase your exercise or decrease your food intake if you want to lose more weight.   If you continue the diet/exercise regimen you started with, you will maintain your weight but probably not continue to drop many pounds.

To get past this weight loss plateau, you need to

  • Review your eating/exercise habits and be sure you haven't "cheated" along the way
  • Cut more calories--try reducing your diet by 200 more calories
  • Increase your workout...either in time or intensity
  • Try to increase movement during the day----take stairs instead of the elevator, run your errands on foot.
  • Applaud your success and make sure your goals are reasonable--just don't fall back.

 

 

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All training programs & diets are NOT created equal... If you've put in a few weeks or months and your results have stopped you need to take a hard look at your approach. To get the most out out of your training try: -Interval training -Shortening your rest periods between sets -Getting your heart rate above 85% multiple times per workout -Short workouts in the morning (between 5-10 minutes) along with your gym workouts Your goal is to boost your metabolism - not only to burn calories during your workout, but to burn fat constantly. As for nutrition, try: -Eating more veggies! 3-4 servings a day will fill you up and help you curb your appetite -Drink half a gallon of water a day -Eat lean protein every meal (preferably lean meat or other full chained amino acid) Just look at your approach to nutrition as the building of a skyscraper - you can either preplan your diet as a master architect would or wing it and hope for the best. You could eat the best foods and use the best materials or eat junk and use mud plaster. There is ALWAYS a solution...

What you're saying is completely true. I know that everybody must say the same thing, but I just think that you put it in a way that everyone can understand. Im sure you'll reach so many people with what you've got to say.

If you want to work past a plateau, you've got to switch things up, and crank up the intensity if required, as this article suggests. Make sure your body is always reacting to a changing workout, and you'll give it the best impetus to grow :)

A great article and I now realize the weight plateau phenomena means that I have to do more exercise and eat less volume of food. Less fats , less carbohydrates and more veges, fruit and nuts and soya proteins like tofu.

i just realized there is Weight-loss Plateau phenomenon. No doubt there are a lot of people frustrating lose their weight. great article...

I think I have hit a plateau after losing 130 lbs on a low carb diet. Time to build some muscle I think.

Very Nice Article. I do also agree with 45. Losing Health doesn't regain Wealth. Thank You. Keep up the good work.

wow,fantastic its really awesome blog it really helped me a lot to solve my problem,i am glad to read it so i would love to pay a great thanks

Definitely the only way to lose weight and keep it off is to make a change in lifestyle strictest diets make you lose weight but can not be done for a long time, besides being harmful to health

Definitely the only way to lose weight and keep it off is to make a change in lifestyle strictest diets make you lose weight but can not be done for a long time, besides being harmful to health

This article is very informative! I learned a lot! Thank you for sharing it.

When i find myself no longer losing weight on a diet, i will throw in a few 'cheat days' to get my metabolic rate back on track. Works most of the time

great article about weight loss, this can make us more careful for take action and battling the weight loss

I like that you mentioned the options outside of structured exercise. A lot of people fail to mention how important NEAT is. Another key to losing weight is by performing strength training while dieting, as this preserves muscle mass.

Weight loss plateaus are very common so people do not get discouraged by them. Just keep plugging away as I am and we will reach our goals sooner than later.

Excellent post, this short post is probably more beneficial that a lot out out there, I agree with your 5 points but I think the most important two are the nutrition and increasing exercise intensity, I would say exercise duration but if your exercising for more than 30 minutes, the intensity should be increased first.

I like that you mentioned the options outside of structured exercise. A lot of people fail to mention how important NEAT is. Another key to losing weight is by performing strength training while dieting, as this preserves muscle mass.

Having a friendly companion like a dog to excerise helps you enjoy it as well as pass the time a lot quicker.

Personally in my experience I find that as long as I change my workouts every 4 weeks this doesnt happen. muscle confusion is one of the best ways of keeping it fresh for your body and dropping weight quickly with the correct diet.

Having lost 2 1/2 stone in 6 months through exercise and diet I reached that plateau and for a couple of months stayed the same weight,idealy I still need to lose another 1/2 stone but I think the art is not to keep weighing yourself every week make it monthly or fortnightly,clear your head of negative thoughts and just keep doing what you have been doing.

I agree with that, but sometimes to make it happen; we have to manage our goal and being discipline with it, and keep in mind that won't work properly if we don't have strong intention.

Loosing weight is completely depending on your lifestyle. I mainly work in sitting position. Maybe I should consider a dog? Great Blog. Keep up the good work.

I think Scott makes a great point. Having a cheat day or even a cheat weekend has always been a huge help with maintaining my diet!

I am on a diet at the present. Some weeks I lose up to 4 pounds and others weeks I do not lose anything. Some of my weight loss could be attributed to water loss. I do cheat a bit so this also slows down the weight loss. I believe in eating potatoes - boiled and then mashed (not french fries). The starch turns to sugar and then the calories start coming. At any rate I have lost 30 pounds so I am pretty proud of that. I weigh in at 135 now and feel much better.

I think the problem most people face is they stick to the same exercise routine and so their body gets used to it. The trick is to vary your exercise/workouts so that you are pushing your body which leads to greater weight loss/muscle mass

I can now add some small program in my diet, after I read this article I better understand

I like that you mentioned the options outside of structured exercise. A lot of people fail to mention how important NEAT is. Another key to losing weight is by performing strength training while dieting, as this preserves muscle mass.

the information can really be overwhelming. I like to try small things that are easy to incorporate into my diet and see if they really do make a difference.

Thank you for this bare-bone explanation! It is the best way to learn! It cuts right to the point, and it's a good thought to keep in mind -- that it's not our fault, that we didn't fail if we stop loosing weight. It is so important to eliminate feelings of guilt, and readjust our actions and thoughts as we make progress. I'll pass it down to all of our nurses, who are mostly women, and many women have this very same concern! Go forth, Save Lives!

I am on a high protein diet at the moment. I have lost almost 30 pounds. The last few pounds seem to be the hardest because you tend to get fed up and then you also reach a plateau. Then bingo you lose three pounds. This could be water weight though. I am not sure. Weight loss plateaus are very common so people do not get discouraged by them. Just keep plugging away as I am and we will reach our goals sooner than later.

There are some diets that can help you lose fat from specific parts of the body: No diet or dietary supplement can cause local fat reduction. Look at it this way: When you put on the weight, do have any choice about where it will be stored? No! Your body gets to decide if it will go on the thighs, arms or legs, according to its genetic predisposition. The same thing happens when you lose weight.

In my opinion, the best way to weight loss is a good breakfast.

I like it when individuals come together and share ideas. Great site, stick with it!

thank you for this great article about weightloss, of course your eating habit and your diet, routine, lifestyle all this factors influent your weight. to succeed you need to control yourself and take action and be more honest with yourself this is the first keys to win this battle.

If anyone would want to succeed in shedding excess weight, such person must be ready to pay the price. Eating less calories than what your body needs starts you off on your weight loss plan and exercise cements it. Positive affirmation fast tracks it and more exercise is needed to stay optimally fit and ready to shed more weight when you reach your plateau

Excelente e instructivo articulo. gracias por la informacion

I have been working out non-stop for 2 months and weigh the same as I did when I started. I do believe I am either retaining water or building muscle. Let's hope it's that latter :)

good tips, but my wife is not lean muscle..she want to lose weight without grow up her muscles.. please tell me how to do that.. thanks..

The blog and data is excellent and informative as well.

Nice article. Short and at the point! Also to be noted about the yo-yo effect meaning that after following your great weight loss tip and receiving best result cautions must be taken. Meaning that healthy diet must continue because the body can gain twice weight and in very short time if high calories food will be consumed.

Nice article, I agree when you hit a weight loss plateau it is important to switch things up. Personally I like to do this about once every 3 - 4 weeks. Seems to be a nice sweet spot to allow your body to adapt to a new workout regimen.

Weight loss is all about discipline. I remember a friend who is on a diet but whenever she sees a mouth watering food, she would just say “I’m gonna eat that and just skip meal tomorrow”. Losing weight takes a discipline. IT is our body so it must be US who will follow the necessary steps to do if we want to lose weight. No if’s and no but’s. - See

Being a fitness coach for a while, I've come to realize that changing the workout routine, most notably making a switch from cardio to isometrics or strength, and vice versa, easily breaks the plateau.

Fat burning comes mainly from cardio workout plus dieting. You can't do one without the other. You have to follow a good program if you are really serious about losing weight.

Weight loss is all about discipline. I remember a friend who is on a diet but whenever she sees a mouth watering food, she would just say "I'm gonna eat that and just skip meal tomorrow". Losing weight takes a discipline. IT is our body so it must be US who will follow the necessary steps to do if we want to lose weight. No if's and no but's.

We all should watch what we eat and exercise regularly.

I agree, initial weight loss is mostly water weight. Aiming to lose two pounds a week would be ideal. Rita<a href="http://www.burningmyfatfast.com" rel="nofollow">

Very good article. This information can be helpful for those people who still have problems with their weight, because there are still many people who do not know this kind of information. This information is unbelievably helpful for me and my family. Thank you very much.

Many thanks for discussing your blog post, it interests me exactly how various folks look at the subject of weight management, from different angles whether it be a diet plan, just what meals to consume, or just what is the very best exercise. I myself prefer to check out exactly how you could raise the metabolic rate to make sure that the body can burn much more calories.

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